‘Twas the night before Melbourne when all through La Grange,
Had reached fever-pitch excitement – is the result about to change?
TTP and Red Cadeaux were safely boxed in their beds,
For tomorrow they rise to face the ultimate test.
Big Red has already seen it, he’s been there before,
Not so Trip To Paris, for whom a new test lies in store.
Three seconds, two pixels and a fan club Australia wide,
We know who the locals will have on their side.
But the Gold Cup winner has shown talent like his mate,
Taking second at Caulfield with plenty supposedly on his plate.
Now both hold live chances in Australia’s great race,
Can they do it? Time will tell. 16 hours is all we must wait.'
Ok, ok – Clement Clarke Moore doesn’t have anything to worry about, and I’ve no plans of giving up the day job, but it’s quite difficult to hide the nerves and excitement both here and at home on the eve of the Cup.
I’ve enjoyed a hectic day, taking in the annual parade, an interview with Fox News and a speech to 1200 people at Call Of The Card – a betting preview of the race hosted by Francesca Cumani. Busy but extremely enjoyable, of course!
As I’ve said before, both horses are in tip-top form heading into tomorrow. The recent rain at Flemington shouldn’t inconvenience Trip To Paris too much and hopefully it will help Red Cadeaux. The pair have nice draws and bar Red Cadeaux pulling off a shoe, which was nothing but a minor inconvenience, they have both enjoyed smooth preparations heading into the big one.
That said, this is probably the most competitive renewal of the race Red Cadeaux has competed in and the quality of opposition continues to rise year on year. Fame Game deserves plenty of respect given his performance in the Caulfield Cup and back-class in Japan, but he's probably short enough at the head of the market given just how much depth there is.
For the likes of Snow Sky, Big Orange and Quest For More to be the prices they are when European runners do so well in the race shows that quality runs right throughout this field. The winner, whoever thay may be, will have to be a truly serious horse.
I know I continue to go on, but once again huge credit must go to Robin, Steve and Darkie, whose skill and dedication has enabled us to get the horses just where we want them ahead of tomorrow. We are extremely grateful for what all three of you do.
And finally, the very best of luck to all of our owners involved with both horses – you all deserve plenty of the plaudits. I hope they both do you proud.
Back tomorrow with reaction from the race.
Keep dreaming.
Ed.